NEW HATCHLING

17/10/2012 13:42

I thought today I would talk about feeding hatchlings.. I know when you have a hatchling you want to feed it lots to make it big and strong and in theory it is a good idea;but in practice it is not... What you must do is feed twice a day , once in the morning and then again late in the afternoon. Why? because in the wild they will wake up when the sun comes up and forage around for food before it gets too hot. Then they will go and find a shade to sleep the rest of the day. Around tea time they will come out again as it is cooler, look for some food and then settle for the night once the sun goes down. They are designed to not waste energy and will conserve what fluid they have in case there is a drought or food is hard to come by. So, I know you want to spoil them and love them so much you want to make sure they are eating enough but what you MUST NOT do is over feed them because they can get pyramiding on their carapace which could lead to long term internal problems later on. If the carapace grows too fast the internal organs will not be able to keep up with the growth and eventually will not be able to sustain the size of the tortoise and this can lead to death around 8-10 years.. Think of how we think a tortoise moves " SLOWLY " (This is not always the case especially when mine see I have strawberries for them !!) But this is how we want them to grow slowly but surely.... If you feed 2 small meals twice a day with limestone flower added at both meals then this is just fine for a growing hatchling. Always cut lots of different foods (at least 5 if you can) at each meal so they are getting a huge variety and will not become fussy about what they will eat... Over the years I have seen.... year one..approx length of little finger..... year two..approx length of ring finger.. year three..approx length of middle finger... year 5 about the size of a hand .Now this is not an exact science and all hands and fingers are different lengths but it is just an indication to help.. All you need to remember is slow and even growth will ensure your tortoise lives a long and happy life. This also refers to the older tortoise, they will eat alot if given the chance because it is inbred they must eat in case they can't find food for a while .I put food out for my ones outside all over their pens so they have to hunt for it .you will get the lazy ones like Tommy ; he waits until someone has found some food and then hot foots it over there to share the spoils!!Of course pyramiding is not always because of over feeding it can be through lack of calcium and uva/uvb early on but I have covered this in an earlier blog.. On a sunny warm day if you put the hatchling on the lawn and watch you will see it walks around eats alittle of this and that and then goes and finds a shade, this is normal, it won't stand and eat and eat. If you must and want to give a litle treat then a little lettuce won't hurt as it is almost all water . Just keep an eye on the carapace because what you are doing now is laying the foundations for a strong and healthy tortoise with a nice smooth carapace.....